Saturday, March 13, 2010

I have quite a lengthy list of Rachael Ray recipes bookmarked on my computer and for the most part, I have been very pleased with the recipes I've attempted. So when I looked through the fridge, the other night, and found 2 heads of broccoli and a tray of mushrooms, I immediately went here and found this recipe for Chicken Divan & Egg Noodle Bake. Sounds delicious doesn't it? Well, it was! It's nothing fancy or out of the ordinary; just good home cookin'! Enjoy!

Chicken Divan & Egg Noodle Bake

Ingredients

For the cream of mushroom sauce:

1 tablespoon EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 1 turn of the pan

2 tablespoons butter, plus additional to coat dish

12 button mushrooms, brushed off with a damp towel and chopped

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup chicken stock

1 cup whole milk or cream

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated or ground

Salt and pepper

Casserole

1 pound broccoli florets

1 pound extra wide egg noodles

2 tablespoons EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 2 turns of the pan

1 shallot, thinly sliced

1 pound chicken tenders or chicken breasts, diced

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, about 4 sprigs, finely chopped

1/3 cup dry white wine, eyeball it or chicken stock

3/4 pound Gruyere or Swiss Emmentaler cheese, shredded

3 tablespoons chives, 12 to 15 blades, chopped

Preparation

Begin by chopping mushrooms, broccoli, and chicken into bit-sized pieces.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the broccoli and egg noodles. Preheat a broiler.

To make the mushroom sauce, heat a medium-size saucepot over medium heat. Add EVOO and the butter.

When butter melts, add in chopped button mushrooms and cook 5 minutes, until just tender.

Sprinkle in the flour and cook for 1 minute.

Whisk in the chicken stock and bring up to a bubble.

Then stir in the whole milk or cream. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer.

Season sauce with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Cook broccoli florets in salted boiling water for 5 minutes.

Then sift out and reserve (don’t drain the water).

Drop the egg noodles into the same boiling water and cook to al dente according to package directions.

Drain the noodles and return them to the hot pot. Add the creamy sauce to the pot and toss the noodles to coat in the sauce.

To prepare the casserole, heat a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the 2 tablespoons of EVOO, then the shallots. Cook for 1 minute and add the chicken to the skillet.

Cook until lightly browned all over and firm, 6-7 minutes. Season with the thyme, salt and pepper. Deglaze the pan with the wine or stock, reduce the heat to medium-low and let the liquid cook off.

To assemble, lightly coat a casserole dish with butter then transfer the cream-of-mushroom noodles to the dish and top with the chicken then the cooked broccoli OR just combine them all like I did and then transfer to the dish.

Finally, top with the shredded cheese. (I used cheddar because it's all I had on hand.)

Place under the broiler until cheese is melted and bubbly, and golden brown at the edges.